News of economy

The Tango floating liquefied natural gas unit YPF.

Argentina seeks winter LNG boost as shale gas dreams falter

Yesterdat 11:19 Argentina is poised to more than double its purchases of liquefied natural gas (LNG) on the spot market this winter, in a bid to avoid a deficit.

Tobacco plantation farms in the northern Argentine province Jujuy.

Medical Marijuana

Jujuy governor encourages tobacco producers to switch to cannabis

Yesterdat 09:00 Jujuy Province Governor Gerardo Morales has suggested that tobacco farmers begin growing cannabis instead, potentially opening up a multi-million-dollar market – but the province's tobacco chamber isn't fully on board.

Alberto Fernández and Mauricio Macri go head-to-head in the first presidential debate this weekend. Also participating are Roberto Lavagna, Juan José Gómez Centurión, José Luis Espert and Nicolás Del Caño.

IMF DEBT PROBE

Government to be plaintiff in IMF debt probe against ex-president Macri

11-04-2021 07:58 The State will act as a plaintiff in a case investigating whether former president Mauricio Macri (2015-2019) broke the law in securing a record US$57-billion loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) back in 2018.

The City Of Buenos Aires under new restrictions.

CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC

Restrictions imposed as second wave slams Argentina

10-04-2021 09:32 President Alberto Fernández unveils new measures; Over the past five days, country has recorded more than 104,000 new cases.

THE WEEK

What we learned this week: April 3rd- April 10th

10-04-2021 09:22 The stories that caught our eye over the last seven days in Argentina.

INCOME TAX REFORM

Congress approves ‘ganancias’ reform, raising income tax floor

10-04-2021 09:06 Income tax bill exempts almost 1.3 million taxpayers from qualification; Companies also set to benefit from similar reform.

Productive Development Minister, Matías Kulfas.

BLOOMBERG

Government mulling oil price controls to tap Vaca Muerta, says Kulfas

10-04-2021 08:57 Argentina’s government is pushing for long-term oil price controls to boost Vaca Muerta production.

LITHIUM

Argentina talks up potential of growing lithium industry

10-04-2021 08:48 Investment in the lithium sector over the last three years has surpassed US$1.1 billion, while jobs created have tripled, according to government data.

In a country where distrust of banks makes people more likely to stuff cash under a mattress than in a checking account, the Ualá mobile banking app has made inroads. Now it's looking to Mexico.

BLOOMBERG

Argentina’s Ualá to buy billionaire Eurnekian’s digital bank

10-04-2021 08:40 Argentine fintech Ualá reached an agreement to buy local billionaire Eduardo Eurnekian’s digital bank Wilobank, according to people with direct knowledge of the matter.

People with coronavirus symptoms queue outside a public hospital to be tested.

CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC

Covid-19 second wave arrives with exhausted economy, citizenry

10-04-2021 07:26 Government introduces new restrictions after surge in infections, hoping to tread thin line between economic pain and healthcare gain.

An activist dressed as Evita Perón takes part with others in a rally calling for debt reform during the virtual Spring Meetings of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund, outside of IMF headquarters in Washington DC on April 8, 2021.

BLOOMBERG – ANALYSIS

Tax-the-rich initiatives gain support across Latin America

08-04-2021 14:55 Chile, Mexico, Colombia see wealth tax proposals advancing, Argentina and Bolivia have already passed measures; Debt in region soared as pandemic caused worst crash in two centuries.

People wearing protective face masks walk by Avenida Brasil, near the Constitución train station in Buenos Aires City, on April 6, 2021.

DEBT RELIEF

Mexico, Argentina urge debt relief for middle-income nations

08-04-2021 11:36 Mexico and Argentina call for international debt relief for middle-income countries home to many of the people pushed into extreme poverty by the coronavirus pandemic; IMF open to doing more to support nations hit hard by virus crisis.

Bloomberg

Buenos Aires bankers’ return to office imperiled by Covid surge

07-04-2021 17:07 Several of Argentina’s largest banks succeeded at getting more employees back to headquarters as the virus toll abated in South America’s second-biggest economy. A rising case count now puts that path into question.

Health Minister Carla Vizzotti and Cabinet Chief Santiago Cafiero.

Coronavirus pandemic

Government prepares new restrictions as second wave hits

06-04-2021 22:50 Government finalising new decree introducing more restrictions to tackle Covid-19 second wave, as Argentina registers record daily high of more than 20,000 confirmed cases.

The “special contribution” will trigger an “exodus of investments, because it punishes the local investor when the foreign investor is not covered by this norm.

CAPITAL LEVY

Argentina's wealth tax has collected just 2% of target to date

06-04-2021 16:47 Argentina’s new wealth tax has netted just two percent of its target figure ahead of its original deadline, with the nation’s richest citizens evidently in no hurry to pay up.

With just two months left until the US presidential election, Facebook says it is taking additional steps to encourage voting, minimise misinformation and reduce the likelihood of post-election “civil unrest.”

Bloomberg

Facebook removes 1,000 fake accounts seeking to sway global politics

06-04-2021 16:44 Facebook says it has removed 14 networks representing more than 1,000 accounts seeking to sway politics around the world, including in Argentina, Iran and El Salvador, while misleading the public about their identity.

The MercadoLibre MercadoPago application is displayed on an Apple iPhone while the MercadoLibre homepage is shown on a Macbook in an arranged photograph taken in Buenos Aires.

Bloomberg

MercadoLibre plans to double workforce with 16,000 new jobs

06-04-2021 14:26 Latin American e-commerce powerhouse will double its workforce across the region to handle the surge in online purchases, according to company staff.

Passengers are pulled up at a traffic stop in Buenos Aires City, during the coronavirus pandemic.

ECONOMIC OUTLOOK

IMF projects stronger 2021 growth amid pandemic rebound

06-04-2021 11:01 IMF forecasts that recession-hit Argentina's economy will grow by 5.8% this year, with global GDP expected to rebound 6% overall.

Photos representing sectors of Argentina's economy.

COVID-19 'SECOND WAVE'?

Less growth, higher deficit – potential impact of ‘second wave’ lockdown

05-04-2021 16:15 Productive Development Minister Matías Kulfas has ruled out a repeat of 2020’s dramatic shutdown of economic activity; Economists predict that further restrictions would seriously damage rebound.

by Mirta Fernandez

IMF DEBT TALKS

Guzmán: IMF credit line deal will not be finalised before May

05-04-2021 10:28 Economy Minister Martín Guzmán says a plan with the International Monetary Fund to repay US$45 billion in debt won’t be finalised by May or June.

International Transgender Day of Visibility on Wednesday was marked by a demonstration outside Congress calling for Tehuel de la Torre, 21, a transgender youth missing since March 11, "to reappear alive."

THE WEEK

What we learned this week: March 27 to April 3

03-04-2021 08:55 A pick of some of the headlines that caught our eye over the last seven days in Argentina.

Many argentines keep their savings abroad.

NEW REPORT

Argentines have US$250 billion stashed outside financial system, says INDEC

03-04-2021 08:47 Deposits in bank accounts abroad,safety deposit boxes at home or hidden "under the mattress," shares, bonds all contribute to this total.

Women claiming for a rise in their wages.

ECONOMIC INDICATORS

Wages continue to lose out to inflation, pushing poverty up

03-04-2021 08:43 Salaries rose 29.6% in 12 months up until February, while prices rose 38.5 percent over the same period.

Alberto Fernandez and Rodriguez Larreta.

POLITICS & THE PANDEMIC

On ‘the fear’ and philosopher kings

03-04-2021 08:17 When polarisation and emotional entrenchment reaches the level of a football rivalry, the democratic system begins to fail.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

Enologist Javier Lo Forte looks at wine at the Pulenta Estate winery in Agrelo, Lujan de Cuyo.

WINE INDUSTRY

Wine sales boosted by pandemic, but vineyards remain wary

03-04-2021 08:02 The coronavirus pandemic has, for the most part, been good for Argentine wine. But vineyards in Mendoza Province are far from celebrating.

Scottish historian and professor Niall Ferguson, pictured during his interview with Perfil's Jorge Fontevecchia.

INTERVIEW: PERIODISMO PURO

Niall Ferguson: ‘It's silly for the left to claim that austerity is conservative’

03-04-2021 07:49 Scottish historian, professor and brilliant polemicist Niall Ferguson on the coronavirus pandemic, the global economic outlook and the causes of Argentina’s economic failure.

by Jorge Fontevecchia

Senate Budget Committee chairman Carlos Caserio (Frente de Todos-Córdoba).

'Ganancias' reform

‘Ganancias’: Senate official says income tax bill will clear upper house

30-03-2021 20:49 Senate Budget Committee chair predicts income tax bill recently approved in the lower house will clear upper chamber next Tuesday or Wednesday.

Workers produce automobiles at a car manufacturing plant.

ECONOMIC INDICATORS

Economic activity up 1.9% in January on previous month

30-03-2021 20:24 Economic activity fell 2% from January 2020, but rose 1.9% when compared to December last year the fastest pace in four months.

An evening harvest in Buenos Aires Province.

AGRICULTURE & ENVIRONMENT

A third of global farmland at 'high' pesticide pollution risk

30-03-2021 14:37 A third of the planet's agricultural land is at "high risk" of pesticide pollution from the lingering residue of chemical ingredients that can leach into water supplies and threaten biodiversity, according to new research.

Buenos Aires Province Governor Axel Kicillof.

BLOOMBERG – ANALYSIS

Kicillof, bondholders’ old foe, plays default hardball

30-03-2021 11:27 Axel Kicillof relished clashing with foreign investors when serving as economy minister. Today, as governor of Buenos Aires Province, he's again locked in a bruising battle with financiers in New York and London.

President Fernandez and Kristalina Georgieva.

IMF DEBT TALKS

Fernández: IMF debt is 'unpayable' and terms must be renegotiated

28-03-2021 21:53 President Alberto Fernández said on Sunday that the Argentina's debt with the International Monetary Fund is "unpayable" in its original form.

Porteños walk the streets near Scalabrini Ortiz Subte station.

LOWER HOUSE APPROVAL

Government advances bill exempting 1.3 million from income tax

28-03-2021 16:08 Argentina’s lawmakers have taken a major step in exempting about 1.3 million citizens from paying income taxes.

A passenger gets out of a taxi in Buenos Aires' financial district.

IMF DEBT TALKS

President Fernández calls to extend IMF payment period

28-03-2021 16:03 President Alberto Fernández called on the IMF to extend the repayment period on the nation’s debt facility beyond 10 years – something the Fund doesn't allow.

People marched on Plaza de Mayo last Wednesday to mark the 45th anniversary of the 1976 coup.

THE WEEK

What we learned this week: March 20 to 27

27-03-2021 08:57 The pick of the stories that caught our eye over the last seven days in Argentina.

MERCOSUR AT 30

Highlights (and low points): Mercosur turns 30

27-03-2021 08:49 A free-trade agreement with the European Union which has yet to be implemented, an imperfect common external tariff, mounted with great difficulty – these factors and others mark the 30-year history of Mercosur, a mosaic of successes and inconclusive challenges.

BLOOMBERG

Argentine banks ask for some relief after worst year since 2007

27-03-2021 08:34 After posting their worst returns in 13 years, nation’s banks are blaming part of their losses on government’s pandemic measures and asking the Central Bank for help.

THE WEEK

Pay no more revisited

27-03-2021 08:18 The urgent question is whether CFK and Guzmán are on the same team and executing some kind of coordinated play to eventually force a deal with the IMF.

by Martín Gambarotta

US political scientist Francis Fukuyama.

INTERVIEW: PERIODISMO PURO

Francis Fukuyama: ‘There’s similarities between populism of Trump and Kirchnerism’

27-03-2021 07:46 US political scientist Francis Fukuyama – perhaps the most important intellectual of the last 50 years – on ‘The End of History,’ the coronavirus pandemic and populism.

by Jorge Fontevecchia

AND THAT REMINDS ME...

Mercosur’s murky future

27-03-2021 07:27 Mercosur will have problems selling itself to the rest of the world while it cannot sell to itself.

by Michael Soltys

Vice-President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, pictured at a March 24 commemorative event in Las Flores, Buenos Aires Province, on Wednesday.

IMF DEBT TALKS

'We can't pay' – CFK puts US$45-billion IMF debt talks into doubt

27-03-2021 07:21 With Economy Minister Martín Guzmán in Washington for meetings with IMF staff members, Vice-President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner makes explosive intervention into restructuring talks.

March 25, 1991: Brazilian President Fernando Collor de Mello (left), Paraguayan President Andrés Rodríguez (second left), Argentine President Carlos Menem (second right) and Uruguayan President Luis Lacalle Herrera, sign copies of the Treaty of Asunción.

MERCOSUR AT 30: ANALYSIS

Thirty years on since its founding, Mercosur faces uncertain future

27-03-2021 07:17 Regional bloc celebrates its 30th birthday weakened by differences, with its partners unprepared for post-pandemic world.

President Alberto Fernández addresses the Mercosur summit.

LATIN AMERICA: MERCOSUR SUMMIT

‘We’re not a burden’ – Fernández clashes with Mercosur leaders

27-03-2021 07:11 Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay confront Argentina to demand greater flexibility to negotiate trade agreements during a tense summit of Mercosur leaders commemorating the 30th anniversary of the regional trade bloc’s founding.

Government House in La Plata, Buenos Aires Province.

BLOOMBERG

Buenos Aires Province weighs next steps after creditor lawsuit

26-03-2021 16:48 Officials say Argentina's largest province is considering what steps to take next to restructure its debt after a group of bondholders sued the province in US courts for more than US$366 million.

Tourists enter Argentina, after arriving on a flight to Ezeiza international airport.

Coronavirus pandemic

Argentina suspends flights from Brazil, Chile and Mexico

26-03-2021 10:22 Government announces that flights to Argentina from Brazil, Chile and Mexico will be suspended starting this Saturday, March 27.

Vice-President and Senate president Cristina Fernández de Kirchner.

IMF DEBT TALKS

IMF and Argentina find common ground amid CFK's bombshell remarks

26-03-2021 10:02 Argentina and IMF coordinate messaging on principles that could underpin country’s programme, a day after Vice-President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner put the deal in doubt.

IMF DEBT TALKS

IMF says 'progress' made after Guzmán visit

25-03-2021 18:09 Mixed messages all round as IMF says it has "made progress" with Economy Minister Martín Guzmán, despite comments from Vice-President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner.

Rosa Correa herds cows to be vaccinated against foot-and-mouth disease in a field in Cerro Pelado, Lavalleja Department, 160 km northeast of Montevideo, Uruguay, on March 17, 2021.

Beef Industry

Beef-addicted Uruguay aiming to make farming greener

25-03-2021 12:00 Last year, Uruguay launched a livestock and climate initiative with the help of the UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO). We hear from Rosa Correa, one of 62 farm owners to implement the programme, about its aims and objectives.

Vice-President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner.

IMF DEBT TALKS

Fernández de Kirchner: Argentina can’t pay US$45-billion IMF loan

24-03-2021 18:15 Argentina is unable to repay its US$45-billion debt with the International Monetary Fund, Vice-President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner said Wednesday.

IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva meets with Economy Minister Martín Guzmán at IMF headquarters in Washington.

IMF DEBT TALKS

‘Close dialogue’ with Argentina continues, says IMF chief Georgieva

24-03-2021 11:27 IMF managing director shares “good meeting” with Economy Minister Martín Guzmán, says “close dialogue” between parties will continue.

Argentina’s coronavirus fight is taking a turn for the worse as the nation that implemented one of region's strictest lockdowns sees deaths surge anyway.

ECONOMIC INDICATORS

Official: Argentina's economy shrank 9.9% in 2020, confirms INDEC

23-03-2021 21:26 Economy shrank by 9.9% in 2020 year-on-year due to the coronavirus pandemic – its worst fall in almost 20 years.

Customers line up outside a shop in Buenos Aires Province.

DEBT WOES

Buenos Aires Province sued in US for missed debt payments

23-03-2021 18:56 Creditors submit a legal claim against the province of Buenos Aires in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York.

Argentina’s Foreign Minister Felipe Solá received Paraguayan Foreign Minister Eladio Loizaga in Buenos Aires last week.

MERCOSUR SUMMIT

Trade and Covid-19 vaccines top agenda for Mercosur summit

23-03-2021 13:22 Mercosur’s member nations will celebrate the 30th anniversary of the bloc's founding at a key summit this Friday, with the clear differences between them more than evident.

by Mariano Beldyk

BLOOMBERG

Debt restructuring talks for Buenos Aires Province stall

22-03-2021 16:23 After nearly a year of extending the deadline of its debt restructuring proposal, fresh documents published by Argentina’s largest province show talks remain stuck.

Tiendanube provides a platform for small and medium sellers to launch personalised stores.

Bloomberg

Start-up Tiendanube raises US$89 million in funding round

22-03-2021 13:03 Argentine e-commerce start-up Tiendanube will use fresh financing to roll out a major expansion across Latin America.

Berni and Santilli during a press conference.

THE WEEK

What we learned this week: March 13 to 20

20-03-2021 08:34 A selection of some of the headlines that caught our eye over the last seven days in Argenina

by Michael Soltys

Protesters demonstrate in Buenos Aires on Thursday.

POVERTY & THE PANDEMIC

Thousands march through Buenos Aires to demand food aid, jobs

19-03-2021 00:57 Thousands of people marched in Buenos Aires on Thursday to demand food aid as the economy has battled the fallout of the coronavirus pandemic.

ECONOMY MINISTER

Guzmán flies to United States for talks with IMF, investors

18-03-2021 13:00 Economy Minister Martín Guzmán flies to New York for talks with investors. He is due to meet with IMF staff, including Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva, next week.

View of a jar with cannabis flowers at the esplanade of the Estela de Luz in Mexico City, on March 9, 2021, on the day that Mexico's Congress begins to discuss eventual legalisation of the use of recreational marijuana.

LEGAL MARIJUANA IN MEXICO?

Mexico prepares for legal marijuana gold rush

18-03-2021 11:52 Mexican lawmakers are close to approving legalisation that is expected to catapult the country's regulated cannabis trade into a billion-dollar legal marijuana market.

Picture of an empty street in São Paulo, taken on March 15, 2021, hours before a night-time curfew takes effect in the state amid the coronavirus pandemic.

RATE RISE

Brazil hikes interest rate, eyeing inflation

18-03-2021 11:39 First rate hike in six years for Latin America's biggest economy. Central Bank indicates another hike of the same magnitude could be coming in May.

Pedestrians carry umbrellas while walking past the Casa Rosada.

BLOOMBERG - ANALYSIS

Argentina resorts to unorthodox tools to fight 40% inflation

17-03-2021 13:24 Argentina is once again turning to a combination of unconventional policy tools to curb inflation, which is expected to near 40 percent this year.

INVESTMENT

President pitches Argentina to top global investment funds

16-03-2021 21:23 President Alberto Fernández pitched Argentina’s growth potential to a host of top global investment funds on Tuesday, as he asked them to back the country and its bid for economic recovery.

EU-MERCOSUR DEAL

More than 450 NGOs, groups condemn ‘obsolete’ EU-Mercosur trade deal

16-03-2021 17:26 More than 450 civil society groups, associations and NGOs call on Mercosur, European Union to “abandon” controversial free-trade deal.

The attack against Fernandez in Lago Puelo.

UNREST IN PATAGONIA

President targeted by mob battling to keep mining out of Chubut

16-03-2021 08:20 Alberto Fernández forced to dodge protesters as they launch attack on minibus transporting president in Lago Puelo.

Unemployed individuals line up in a queue looking for work.

JOBLESSNESS

220,000 registered jobs lost in 2020, concludes study

15-03-2021 15:52 A study by the Ecolatina consultancy firm has found that approximately 220,000 officially registered jobs were lost in Argentina last year as a result of the coronavirus pandemic and ongoing economic crisis.

President Alberto Fernández and his team speak with Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro and other government officials during a videoconference call.

MERCOSUR SUMMIT

No Bolsonaro in BA – Government takes Mercosur ceremony online

13-03-2021 15:50 Argentina has suspended a historic ceremony marking the 30th anniversary of the Mercosur regional trade bloc, due to be held later this month, and will instead take it online.

EDITORIAL

Forecasts and forebodings

13-03-2021 09:21 Improved fiscal solvency meets the dream of every orthodox economist but puffing up an already excessive tax burden would make the cure worse than the disease.

THE WEEK

What we learned this week: March 6th to 13th

13-03-2021 09:16 A selection of stories that caught our eye over the last seven days in Argentina.

by Michael Soltys

Prices in February rose 3.6 percent from January, the INDEC national statistics bureau revealed Thursday.

ECONOMIC INDICATORS

Inflation data casts shadow over government’s target

13-03-2021 09:07 Price increases slowed slightly in February from previous month, but Alberto Fernández administration’s 2021 target of 29% already looks out of reach.

Martín Guzmán acting as a health agent with a syringe in his hand.

ECONOMIC OUTLOOK

More of the same?

13-03-2021 05:48 The kick-off of the October electoral campaign promises to be brutal for future expectations. Government and opposition will duke it out once again, using all of the usual dirty tricks.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

IMF DEBT TALKS

Guzmán to hold talks with IMF in Washington on March 23-24

11-03-2021 23:32 Economy minister's trip to Washington for talks with IMF officials, including Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva, will take place before the end of the month.